


Something Comfortable

by homeybee



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Friendship, Kissing, M/M, bard kravitz, in the plane of thought, soft, the boys have a second date
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-15
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-10-28 17:39:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17791826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/homeybee/pseuds/homeybee
Summary: In the months after Refuge, Taako and Kravitz find time to meet up and get to know each other better. Where better to go than San Francisco?This was basically an excuse for me to write something nice and soft, originally supposed to be about Magnus, but I became curious about where Taako and Kravitz would go on their date.





	1. A Late Visit

**Author's Note:**

> Enjoy the read, and please feel free to let me know about any errors or confusion you have, or if you want more :)  
> Happy Valentine's Day!

Magnus Burnsides nodded awake, warm and comfortable on the couch in front of the fireplace. The embers of the fire flickered with an orange glow, and Merle snored loudly on the other side of the couch. It took Magnus a moment to figure out what had woken him, but he stood, gently pushing Merle’s feet out of the way to stand up. 

He shifted the rug on the floor slightly, and saw that it had grown very dark planetside. He moved the rug back, rubbing his eyes. A soft peal of laughter came from the hallway outside, reminding him that Taako had dozed off on the couch with them, also. Taako must have gotten up, disturbing him on his way out. 

But who would he be talking to? Magnus frowned, wondering if Lucretia was meeting with him secretly, harboring some information from the rest of them. But as he grew closer to the door he could hear the second voice, light and masculine, joking softly. Definitely not the Director’s sharp, commanding tone, and it didn’t sound like anyone else Magnus had met, either. 

He leaned his ear against the door before opening it, listening. Taako’s voice came through, a playful drawl.

“Alright, handsome, spill. Where were you hoping to spirit me away to in the middle of the night?” 

There was a pleasant chuckle, and a ripping noise, and then several moments of silence. Magnus poked his head out the door, and was baffled to find a totally empty hallway, with no sign of Taako or anyone else. He considered calling out, but decided against it. Taako had seemed to trust whoever he had been with, and it wouldn’t be good for anyone else to come and find him gone. 

Instead, Magnus pulled his head back inside the door and returned to the couch. 

The room seemed oddly quiet, so Magnus dug around in his pocket workshop for his latest whittling project, and said “So what do you think about Taako’s secret meetings, old man?” 

Merle shifted, and asked, “How’d you know I was awake?” 

“You snore, Merle. A lot.”

“Oh.” A beat, and then, “Who’s he meeting, again?” 

Magnus laughed, chipping at his block of wood. It hadn’t quite taken shape yet, but looked like it might become another duck. “I’m not sure yet, but I think we’ll find out if it’s important.”  
Merle humphed in agreement, and soon returned to his snoring. 

Magnus kept on whittling, thinking about Refuge. His mind kept returning to the scroll he’d been given, and he spent several hours in a near-trancelike state, meditating on information he could recall, but not quite process.  
The pile of woodchips by his feet grew larger as the night wore on, and several hours later there came quiet noises from the hallway again, and Taako slipped back into the room. Magnus turned to look at him, and the elf froze when he noticed Magnus’s stare. 

His hair was blown back and he was wearing a different hat, which was askew slightly, but he was smiling softly like he’d just had the time of his life and was trying to look normal. The tips of his ears and cheeks were pinkish, and he hissed,  
“What?” 

“Nothing,” Magnus hummed, giving him a gentle smile. “Good time?”  
He chipped away at his creation, finally taking a good look at it. A raven stared back at him, eyes sharp and beady. He took off a bit more above the brows, making the line more distinct. 

After several seconds, there came a soft reply.  
“Yeah.” 

Magnus turned to look up at his tone, and Taako’s face was clear and vulnerable in the moment before he turned to go to his bed. It was unusual, the expression on his face. Magnus didn’t think he’d ever seen him look so calm, and happy before. It made him look soft, and quite young. Magnus hummed again, and placed the raven on the table beside Taako’s bed, before getting into his own and falling asleep almost immediately. 

...

Kravitz shifted nervously outside the door to the reclaimers’ quarters. He had spoken to Taako a few hours ago, and they had agreed on a time, but he was a bit late. He could sense Taako’s life energy inside, calm and unmoving in sleep. 

Damn.

Carefully, Kravitz felt inside the room with his consciousness, and tore a small rift in the space just above Taako’s sleeping face. He pulled a single black feather out of his pocket and dropped it through.  
Half a beat later, he felt Taako shift and awaken, and a few moments later the door opened noiselessly, and there he was. Strange and beautiful as ever, Taako grinned at him. 

“What held you up, zombie man? Had to wait for the ghostbusters theme to play?” Kravitz smiled embarrassedly. 

“Sorry, I-- ghostbusters?” He asked curiously, forgetting his excuse. 

Taako’s grin became a delighted smirk as he pondered how to respond. 

“Wait, nevermind, you don’t need to answer that. I got a call just as I was about to leave. I thought I would be able to make it in time, but it, er... appears to be later than I anticipated?”

“Guess you’ll just have to make it up to me somehow, hmm? Taako wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Kravitz grinned at his apparent excitement, and responded loftily, “Oh, don’t worry, I think this will be worth the wait.” 

Taako raised an eyebrow, curiosity getting the better of him. “Alright, handsome, spill.”

 

The portal worked differently from Taako’s ordinary methods of Blinking between the planes, in that it was a physical doorway and not a method of transportation. He walked through it, and stumbled when his foot hit solid ground, the sensation somewhat akin to expecting another stair at the bottom of a staircase when there was none.  
Before he could fall, though, a firm hand caught his arm and Kravitz steadied him. 

Taako looked around, and decided that this was not the material plane. It was also not the astral plane, which he had been somewhat expecting. They had landed between two very tall buildings, which cast a dark shadow over the two of them.  
However, Taako could see that past the buildings it was bright as noon, and an endless stream of people walked past on the shimmering grey street in brightly colored outfits, chatting with each other and talking into small devices. 

When Taako turned back to look at Kravitz, he found his eyes wouldn’t move in that direction, slipping right past him. Recognizing illusion magic, Taako channeled his energy to focus on looking past it.  
His senses slipped back to normal, and he could hear Kravitz humming something soft and melodic. His voice was deep and comforting, and the tune spoke of the comfort of home, the ordinary, something familiar and warm. 

The illusion settled and Kravitz removed his hand from Taako’s arm, smiling down at him. Taako felt himself warm, and distracted himself by studying Kravitz’s magical handiwork.  
His suit and robe had transformed into a pair of dark jeans and a button down, and Taako found that his own clothes had also transformed, to a similar pair of pants and an unremarkable shirt with short sleeves. His umbrella appeared unchanged, and Taako wondered if it had resisted the transformation.

Frowning at his own outfit, Taako clicked his tongue. “Mmm, close, but not quite…” Taako waved a hand, changing almost everything. The pants tightened, the shirt loosened, and several layers of various jackets appeared. The umbrella turned a lovely shade of turquoise to match the outermost jacket. 

“Much better.” Taako grinned over at Kravitz, who looked a bit surprised, but not unpleasantly so. He responded by humming another melody, this one fast and bright, and the pattern on his button down shifted to match the color. 

“Shall we?” Kravitz offered his arm, and Taako laid his hand on it daintily. Together they merged out of the alley and into the flow of the crowd. 

Taako found it hard not to gape at all the people and shining buildings, and signs with bright neon lettering advertising various wares and products that he didn’t fully understand, and a few he recognised from his brief glances into his compact mirror. 

“Oh!” Taako realized delightedly, “We’re in the plane of thought, aren’t we!” 

Kravitz grinned at his exuberance, and nodded. “Yeah! I haven’t been here in a while though, so I might not be the best tour guide. It’s out of my jurisdiction, and I can’t say I’ve taken much time off of work recently.” 

They continued on, and Kravitz began explaining what city they were in, and why he liked it there, and Taako tried to listen to everything but was so easily distracted by all the other sights and sounds.

The streets were crowded with those sleek metal wagons, all bustling and honking, but close to a standstill. The sidewalk they stood on was full of people, all dressed in variously fashionable outfits, some with animals, some playing strange shining instruments. The buildings stretched up hundreds of feet high, giving Taako a strange sense of vertigo looking up at them.  
They passed a man holding an enormous snake and several curious onlookers petting it cautiously, and then several makeshift tents where craftsmen and jewelers displayed their goods. 

Everything shined and glistened with bright colors, obvious care put into every item. Taako inspected a row of rings distractedly, and then scarves, and then some decorative knives. 

Kravitz stood patiently still as Taako adjusted his outfit to match every time he tried something new on, and finally began to giggle helplessly when he found himself so covered in accessories he could hardly see the mirror Taako dragged him to stand in front of.

Under the disapproving eye of the stall-owner, they continued on, taking only a wide-brimmed lilac hat Taako couldn’t bear to part with, which he switched out with his wizard’s cap.

They reached an intersection, and suddenly Taako could see the way ahead of them. A bright white clocktower sat directly before them in the midst of a well-manicured field, and past that the city ended, giving way to a glimmering green bay. 

They turned, and began walking along a sprawling area of parkland that followed the shoreline. There were various businesses and buildings interrupting the shoreline, made of wood and glass with lovely architecture, and several slim wooden piers stretched out into the deep green water of the marina. 

“This is what they call the Embarcadero,” Kravitz explained as they crossed the street, passing a few teenagers on skateboards. “There used to be an enormous stone road that they had built over the city here, one with multiple levels for the wagons, uh cars, to drive both ways.” His face darkened, remembering. “There was a big earthquake, and all of the people on the lower level were crushed. They had to gather extra reapers to help gather everyone up and take them to the astral plane.”

“That’s pretty awful,” Taako responded seriously. 

“Yeah, I did a lot more ordinary reaping then, and there was a lot to deal with. It was right before I was promoted. After it all fell, though, the humans rebuilt this place as more of a tourist attraction. I don’t think any of them could stand the idea of another giant stone structure that could fall. Apparently people like it like this quite a bit more, too.”

“It is a very stylish place,” Taako responded, leaned out over the edge of the wooden barrier and enjoying the chill breeze in his face.  
Glancing at Kravitz, he asked, “But what exactly is your job? You said you never get a day off, and uh no offense, but you didn’t strike me as a workaholic, or a real stickler for the rules, or anything. I mean, you gambled all our souls in a game of cards.”

Kravitz chuckled, and leaned on the rail next to him. “Yeah, that’s about right. In the astral plane, we have a sort of hierarchy of reapers?  
There are the ones at the bottom, who guide the ordinary souls into the astral plane to complete their journey. Those exist in every plane, or at least all the ones with living beings in them, and make up most of our workers.  
Then there are those who stay in the Astral plane, and work as guards or attendants to the Raven Queen, and then there are the emissaries-- basically bounty hunters.  
We’re at the top, right below the Queen herself. I’m one of her lieutenants. That means I get all the exciting jobs-- the ones that would probably mean the end of the world if they aren’t taken care of.”

Taako watched his face as he talked, looking out at the gulls and boats and islands. He really was quite handsome. “So what you’re saying, is that you’re basically the Raven Queen’s golden boy and that’s why she lets you get away with making deals over card games?” 

Kravitz let out a disgruntled noise, and looked back at Taako to say something in his own defense-- but forgot whatever it was, his expression quickly fading into something fond and amused at Taako’s twinkling eyes. After a beat, he seemed to realize how close they were, and moved back, a hint of embarrassment warming his dark skin. 

“Anyway, uh, that’s how I found this place the first time. I came back a couple times, while they were rebuilding, to watch, but I really haven’t been back since. I’m glad I decided to take you, though.”

Taako smirked at the recovery, and reached over to tap his finger twice on Kravitz’s reddening cheekbones. “Yeah, me too.” 

Taako let out a peal of laughter at the way his lips parted gently in surprise, and then he leapt back down onto the path, looking back expectantly.

 

They continued their walk, and Taako soon discovered with excitement that his pouch of gold had transformed into a wallet of some strange paper currency, which he used to buy flowers, sweets, bread, and a ride on a strange carriage pulled by a man on a bicycle.  
Kravitz watched him curiously all the while, and they enjoyed several lighthearted jokes together. 

They discovered an arcade with all sorts of strange games with little controls, all of which Taako used magic on to win.  
They played air hockey, using competing illusions to try to trick the other into losing a point. Taako cast all sorts of strange magic on the puck, the board, and even Kravitz himself, while the reaper would tear tiny portals for the puck to slip directly into Taako’s goal, and whistle tunes of distraction until he had won easily.  
Taako was put out for a few minutes, but was soon distracted by a skeeball game, levitating the ball in order to rack up points until he grew bored.

Finally, they hauled their winning tokens over to the booth at the entrance to the arcade, and Taako smiled blithely as Kravitz charmed the woman with the prizes, handing over their tokens for several candy bars, sparkly trinkets, and one enormous teddy bear.  
Taako deposited the bear into the pocket spa, and they wandered out of the arcade, discovering that the sun had grown low in the sky. After walking around for a couple minutes, playfully arguing over who deserved the majority of their prizes, they found a bench at the end of a pier to watch the sun set and share their winnings. 

They rested there awhile, leaning against each other in silent companionship. Finally, as the sky grew pink and orange and reflected on the boats in the harbor, Kravitz turned his gaze towards Taako. 

“Is there anything else you want to do before we leave?” He asked. 

Taako yawned and rested his head against Kravitz’s. His braid had come partially undone, and he ran his fingers through his hair, finishing the job. He considered for a while, humming and muttering quietly. Finally, he looked up and grinned. 

“Nah,” He said contentedly, and they watched each other for a moment, a soft tension preventing either from moving. 

 

“Okay then.” Kravitz took Taako’s hand in his, and they stood together. 

This time, instead of summoning his scythe, Kravitz began to hum a waltz, interspersing a few words here and there as if only half-remembering the words. The song dipped and flowed like the gentle waves that rose and fell under the pier, the words describing a boat that rested in a harbor, weary from its endless journeys. 

As they watched, a shape manifested before them, blurry at first, then gaining clarity. A small sailing vessel thudded gently against the rail, coming to a halt before them. 

“Fancy!” Taako allowed himself to be moderately impressed by the song and the magic as they stepped aboard. 

Kravitz smiled from the praise, and whistled a quicker tune, gathering a wind which blew them out towards the sunset. The wind shifted in color now and then, obviously magical.  
It whisked them forward, and Taako watched interestedly as their surroundings lost color as they shifted into the ethereal plane, and then gained shape again as they entered the astral plane, and then he found them floating through the air of the material plane again, until Kravitz landed them on the lawn of the moon-base again. 

As they walked back towards the dormitories again, they continued to hold hands, but neither acknowledged it. It just felt natural. 

In the hallway outside the reclaimers’ chambers again, Taako finally broke their companionable silence.  
“Thank you for today,” He said.

“It was my pleasure, Taako. I hope I’ll be seeing you again soon?” Kravitz took his other hand as well, in a somewhat old-fashioned gesture that made Taako feel warm and off-balance. 

Taako forgot whatever clever response he meant to say, looking into Kravitz’s dark eyes, who looked so sincerely hopeful. Instead he leaned upward, and their lips brushed together gently. 

 

“Yeah.” He murmured, resting their foreheads together. Then Kravitz leaned back down to kiss him again, sweet and slow, and time ceased to pass between them. 

After what might have been hours, or only minutes, Taako pulled back and let out a sigh of satisfaction. 

“I’ll call you.” He gave a mischievous look, and Kravitz looked as if he didn’t want to leave, but strengthened his resolve and opened a portal.  
As Kravitz transformed into the grim reaper, Taako couldn’t help but comment, “Hot,” and wink. However, he was caught off guard when Kravitz lost all resolve and rushed back in as if pulled by some strange magnetism, face flickering back to flesh, to give him one last hug. 

It was Kravitz’s turn to give a sigh, halfway to a contented growl, as he struggled for words. 

“Just- you.” He managed to say.

Taako giggled and hugged him again. Finally, they managed to pull apart, and Kravitz stepped back through his portal, Taako softly opening the door to the room.


	2. A Secret Revealed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus struggles with the burden of all the new information he's gained since Refuge, and decides to tell a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was relistening to the episodes right after Refuge, and thinking about what would've happened if Magnus were to tell someone about his findings, before shit went down in The Suffering Game. I hope y'all like this one as much as the first chapter! Sorry it took me so long to post another one, and I hope there aren't too many mistakes. Enjoy!

Magnus paused in the doorway of the training dojo, calling out loudly, “Hey Carey, you ready?” to the seemingly empty room.

The dragonborn girl quickly stepped out of the locker room, pulling her jacket over her shoulders and flashing him a smile, last to leave after the Regulators’ usual training session. 

“Yeah! Sorry, it’s been a bit of a while since we had practice before lunch, hasn’t it? It’s nice to get an actual break,” Carey said brightly, and grabbed her bag. They walked together down the hallway, in the general direction of the quad. Most days, they grabbed lunch there together, often joined by Killian and the other Reclaimers or any of their friends. The past couple of weeks, however, the Director had been working them nonstop through the afternoons, and their routine had been a bit broken up.

Magnus glanced down at her, and found her staring off into the distance, brow concerned.  
“Hey, what’s up?” He asked, nudging her shoulder as they walked. She stepped reflexively out of the way, but shook herself out of it. 

“It’s not really anything?” Carey answered after a moment, and Magnus just listened, knowing she would go on.

“I’ve been… a little worried, I guess? About the Director.” 

“Really?” Magnus hummed thoughtfully, considering it. “I guess she has seemed pretty uptight lately, but she’s always really focused on her work. On making us better, you know.”

“Yeah, but it’s not even just all the extra practices or anything. She seems like under her whole… facade thing, she’s really losing it. I don’t know if she’s scared because we’re so close to the end of this...thing, or what, but it’s kind of eating at me.” She sounded more agitated than Magnus would’ve expected.  
“Like, she won’t even explain what’s up, and she’s been all jumpy lately when anyone tries to ask her something. Angus came to me crying twice this week because she snapped at him.” 

“Maybe we should investigate?” Magnus offered, perturbed. “We could try to figure out why she’s been acting so weird, or even just ask her seriously. Merle might be good? He seems pretty friendly with her, in a more serious way than he is with the rest of us.”

Carey coughed to hide her laugh, but then chuckled aloud.  
“Hey! Magnus hip-checked her again, and now she was too busy laughing to move out of the way. “I was being serious.” But he grinned anyway, glad he had pulled her out of her ruminations.

“Sorry! Sorry, Mags,” She tried to stop giggling. “I’m just pretty sure that the Director isn’t going to tell us anything straight-up, with how she’s been acting.” 

She looked serious again, and continued. “It’s like, normally, she tries to act all serious and in-charge and stuff, but you all will do something absolutely crazy and she’ll break the act a little bit.  
But these days, she just gets mad, or starts brooding or something. It seems like she trusts us even less than usual! And, I can’t think of hardly any reason why she’d be so closed-off, unless there was a… Magnus?”  
She stopped and turned, because Magnus had stopped walking and was looking at his boots, breathing heavily. 

“Hey, Mags, are you okay?”

 

He looked up, eyes forced a little wider than usual, forming a strangely intense look.  
“Uh, yeah. Sorry, I don’t think I know why the Director’s been acting so weird, but--” He took a deep breath, and released it aggressively, like he was torn between wanting to say something, and trying very hard not to. 

“Magnus?” Carey looked worried, and grabbed his hand, signing the Thieves’ Cant symbols for ‘Safe, Confirm?’ in his palm.

Magnus opened and closed the hand, then took another breath, signing Confirm, then closing his hand into a tight fist. “Carey, there’s something I need to show you.”

“Why? What’s wrong? Are you okay? Is it about the Director?” 

Magnus shook his head and sighed, then gestured her the opposite way down the hallway, away from the quad where everyone else had retired for lunch.

 

“I’ll explain, I guess. I don’t know if it’ll help you figure out what’s been wrong with the Director, but if she’s trusting us even less than usual, maybe this is why.”  
He stopped walking at the elevator, and pressed the down arrow. Waiting for it to arrive, he began to pour out his disorganized thoughts. 

“Okay, so, the other night, I maybe went to talk to the voidfish?”

“To talk? But I thought it just kind of… floated, and did it’s thing? I never really thought it was sentient, I guess. How’d you get it to, uh, talk?” Carey asked cautiously, unsure what he was getting at.

“I may have gone for a swim in the tank?” Magnus said very quickly, and grimaced at Carey’s shocked expression. It quickly turned into admiration, however.”

“Well! You took a swim in the tank of what’s probably the most important creature in the whole world, in the middle of the night, and no one knew a thing!” She grinned. “We’ll make a rogue of you yet.” 

“Wait-- hey, I already am a rogue, you gave me a certificate!” Magnus laughed indignantly, and the elevator dinged and opened, allowing them to step in. 

 

After the doors shut again and they began moving downward, Magnus continued his tale. “So, I talked to the voidfish. I don’t know why it reacted to me and not, like, Johann, or something, but it said a lot of things. I don’t know if said is the best word?  
Anyway, it showed me a bunch of memories and stuff I didn’t really understand, and then some really ominous and kind of confusing pictures of these circles getting swallowed up?  
But the thing I’m worried about, the thing maybe Lucretia might be mad about… it told me it had a baby. It kept singing that song it always sings, and the letters spelled out EGG and BABE. I don’t really… know what to make of it all? Sorry, I think I’m rambling a little bit. It was kind of a lot.” Magnus finished.

 

“A second voidfish.” Magnus could see Carey calculating, putting the pieces together. “Shit.” She flinched and grabbed her temples as her ears roared with white noise, and Magnus steadied her. 

“Hey, heyheyhey. Stop trying to think about it!” Magnus urged, pulling her into a hug. She breathed and seemed to relax, and then tensed again a moment later, taking several more slow breaths before she could drive the static out of her mind. 

“Okay,” She pulled back finally. “Okay. Uh, Mags, d’you think maybe we’ve got into something a little bigger than we bargained for?” 

 

Before he could answer, the elevator door slid open to the lowest floor of the moon base, where the Reclaimers’ suite was, and they continued in silence to the door, their footsteps echoing on the polished flagstones of the hallway.

Magnus opened the door, and then closed it behind them with a click. 

“Did you just bring me down here so you could tell me all that without everyone around, or…?” Carey asked, watching Magnus.

“No. There’s something else I need to show you. The reason why I can’t tell anyone about this.”

Carey padded softly across the room and perched gingerly on the arm of the couch, muttering to herself. “Alright, this is cool. Coolcoolcoolcool-- Hey Magnus?” She called.

He had disappeared into his own bedroom, and she could hear him rummaging through his possessions for something. 

“Magnus, are we betraying the Director? Because she could fucking kill us, I hope you know that!” Carey called after him.

Magnus returned from his search looking solemn and holding a wooden tube, which he removed a roll of papers from and sat down on the couch next to Carey. 

He opened his mouth to answer her, maybe to reassure her, and then closed it. “I- I don’t know, Carey.” He sighed, and then pushed the papers toward her. “You need to see these, but you can’t try to think about them or it’ll give you another headache.” 

 

Her expression was unreadable as she perused the drawings, glancing at the first two curiously, and then holding the next for far too long, before finally putting it back down.

“That’s one of the red robes, yeah?” She looked up at Magnus, who was very on edge, but looked resolute. 

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“It’s not the one you guys met?”

Magnus let out a huff of laughter. “No, it’s definitely not. I don’t think so, at least?” 

“Yeah, you would probably… know,” Carey picked up the drawing again. “This is the one who brought the cup to Refuge, though?”

“That’s what June said.” Magnus nodded again.

“Okay. Okay. So, uh, this is you,” Carey said after several more seconds. “And the voidfish has a baby somewhere, and my brain keeps turning into static when I try to think about any of it. Oh, and, the Director is really on edge for some reason.” Her voice had gained a panicked edge, but she put the drawing back down and let out an enormous sigh, falling back to lay sprawled on the couch, her head on his lap.

“Oh, Magnus.” She stared up at his face. “Why didn’t you tell anyone?” She asked, compassion and worry thick in her voice.

 

Magnus opened his mouth to respond, but could only choke out a sob. His big hands came up to cover his face, tears ran down his cheeks into his beard. He could only shake, consumed by relief and guilt and fear, and too many things to even say.

Carey snuggled closer to him, and put an arm around his huge shoulders to hug him, rubbing his back in slow circles.  
“It’s gonna be alright. We’re going to figure it out, and you don’t have to deal with this all alone anymore.”

“I’m sorry, I thought-- I thought maybe everyone would turn against me if they saw the-- the drawing.” He pulled in a shaky breath, “I should have told you sooner. I should have told Taako and Merle but I was-- I was scared they--” He cut off with a sob.

“Shhh,” Carey hugged him tighter, and he finally leaned into her, letting himself calm down a little. She began carding through his coarse hair, and he let out a shaky sigh. 

“You’re a good friend, Carey.” He wiped his eyes. “I’m really in a pickle here, aren’t I?”

“Look,” Carey said. “This is definitely a lot more than I expected, but I’m definitely glad we found out about this stuff before it was too late. We’ve got time. We can still tell everyone, and try to find out what’s up with the Director, and maybe even figure out some of this,” She gestured to the roll of papers. “It’s going to be alright.” 

“Thank you for not freaking out,” Magnus smiled softly and leaned back into the couch. 

“Hey, only a really shitty best friend would turn on you because you might be a member of an evil organization trying to destroy the world!” Carey joked, and screwed up her face in pain again as Magnus laughed.

For several moments, they breathed, allowing the last of the tension to flow away. Carey continued to run her scaly fingers gently through Magnus’s hair. 

...

They remained like that for so long that Magnus drifted off, and awoke very thirsty and a little confused, but Carey was nestled in his side, breathing slowly and evenly, and he couldn’t bear to wake her. He let his head fall back into its comfortable position and fell back into easy half-waking dreams. 

He awoke again when the door opened noisily, and Taako entered with Merle, Killian, and Avi, who stopped chattering upon noticing them, and instead chattered in equally audible whispers.  
“Aww, look at them!” Killian cooed. “That’s adorable.”

Carey had woken, and raised a hand. “I am not adorable. I am stealthy and fierce… and very comfortable. I will not be underestimated.” 

Killian chuckled, and came over to press her lips gently onto Carey’s forehead. “I would never underestimate your adorableness.”

“Hey!” But she was laughing too, and allowed herself to be helped off the couch and into a quick kiss, which was met by wolf whistles and fake gags from the peanut gallery (Merle and Taako), at which they both rolled their eyes, still looking happy.

Magnus sat up finally, and sniffed. The scent of meat and spices and delicious sauce filled the room. “Who has food?” He asked, stomach growling in the realization that he was very hungry. Taako dramatically pulled two cafeteria plates from his bag with a flourish. 

Taako bowed, extending the plates before him.“I bring you only the finest, most exquisite-- hey!” Magnus laughed, as he and Carey had simultaneously snatched their plates of delicious smelling food. “Mmmm, is this butter chicken?” Magnus asked, mouth full already. 

“Yeah, it is. Glad to see that this is the kind of respect I get for all my hard work!”

“Did you make this?” Carey looked up from her plate.

“Nah, he just Careyd it here from the cafeteria.” Merle cut in.

“Hey! It took a lot of effort to deliver those safe and warm, without you heathens eating it, and I cast prestidigitation to make it taste fucking phenomenal! You all don’t deserve my talent.” Taako made a show of turning up his nose and huffing in annoyance.

“Thanks, Taako,” Magnus drawled, taking another bite. “Oh, did we miss dinner? How long were we asleep for?”

“Yeah, dude, it’s like eight.” Avi said, taking a seat on the big armchair near the fire. Merle and Taako followed suit, sprawling next to Magnus on the big couch. Carey and Killian sat together in the second armchair, the plate balanced precariously on the arm.

“So, why’d you guys decide to take an emergency nap instead of joining us for lunch?” Killian asked curiously. Carey glanced at Magnus, who discreetly signed, ‘Not yet.’ 

“Uh, Magnus forgot his bag down here so we came down to get it after practice, and then I passed out on him. I didn’t really mean to fall asleep,” Carey lied easily. 

“Hey, Avi, what is that?” Merle suddenly interrupted, excusing them from any more excuses. Everyone looked over as Avi sipped from a small flask nonchalantly. He grinned, guilty as charged. “It’s the good stuff. You guys want some?”

And so the flask was passed around, and the laughter and inappropriate jokes became more frequent, conversation flowing easily. 

“Hey, so I’ve got a question.” Avi asked, leaning forward.  
“Waitwaitwait! Guys!” Magnus interrupted excitedly, pausing for dramatic effect. “Let’s play truth or dare!”

There was a chorus of cheers and groans, but Magnus did not give in.  
“Come on guys, it’ll be great. Trust me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to tell me what you thought! I've decided I'm going to continue writing about these boys for awhile, but I'm not sure how many chapters I'm aiming for yet. I'm very excited for this game of truth or dare, and Kravitz will definitely be making a return at some point.  
> Please leave a comment letting me know if you liked it, or if there was anything I missed!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please leave a comment if you enjoyed it, and tell me if you'd like any more (especially from Magnus's POV) 
> 
> The song I imagined Kravitz sang to summon their boat is this:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mnxDLZEkH4 (Away From The Roll Of The Sea)  
> I had more ideas for the other tunes but that one seemed the only really important one.


End file.
